how to clean bathroom porcelain tile before sealing

Different types of ceramic tile collectively make upwardly the ceramic tile family and all share ceramic tile'southward piece of cake-cleaning benefits. Each of the tile subsets is produced slightly differently and may consequently have additional advantages that lend themselves to specific applications. "Ceramic tile" (nonporcelain ceramic tile surfaces, such as quarry tile, regular ceramic tile, pressed flooring tile, and wall tile) or "porcelain tile" (porcelain tile surfaces), all offer artful and functional advantages over many nonceramic surface options, including h2o, stain, and scratch resistance. Pair these benefits with piece of cake maintenance and yous accept an ideal surface pick from flooring to ceiling, inside and out, with options appropriate for different levels of utilize (residential to heavy industrial).

Spend less time cleaning and more than time admiring your beautiful porcelain and ceramic tile surfaces with our easy cleaning tips.

In a Nutshell: A Super-Quick Guide to Cleaning Porcelain and Ceramic Tile Surfaces

Need a quick answer? We'll get into the whys and wherefores below, simply hither are some quick, demand-to-know tips to clean up your current mess.

What to Practice When Cleaning

For regular cleaning, just sweep away debris, wipe with clean water, and thoroughly dry.
For deep cleaning, utilise a pH-neutral or mildly alkaline detergent.
Use a nylon or plastic scrubber, if needed.

What Not to Do When Cleaning

Don't use acidic cleaners, including vinegar.
Don't use oil- or wax-based cleaners every bit they leave a rest that may attract dirt.
Don't use steel wool or other abrasive scrubbers.

Low-Maintenance Care

Easy care starts with understanding the numerous low-maintenance and hygienic benefits of porcelain and ceramic tile:

Bacteria resistance: Porcelain and ceramic tile surfaces are inhospitable to the growth of bacteria and other microbes such as mold.
Antimicrobial: Options are available with antimicrobial backdrop that tin can suppress and even destroy harmful microorganisms, such as mold, fungi, bacteria, and viruses.
Hypoallergenic: In addition to containing no allergens, porcelain and ceramic tile surfaces are impenetrable past allergens in the environment, including dirt, grit, dust mites, and pollen.
Water resistance: All porcelain and ceramic tile are h2o-resistant. Further, porcelain is "impervious" to moisture, meaning it has a h2o absorption of 0.five% or less.
Easy cleaning: No harsh chemicals are necessary — usually, h2o alone is enough.
Stain and scratch resistance: Porcelain and ceramic tile surfaces are highly resistant to stains, scratches, scrapes, dents, and cuts. Dirt often accumulates in minor crevices acquired by harm on nonceramic materials.

[Related: Wellness Benefits of Ceramic Tile ]

Porcelain and Ceramic Tile Cleaning Supplies

Broom or vacuum cleaner

Clean h2o

Clean cloth or mop

For occasional deep cleaning, a mildly alkaline detergent (e.k., Mr. Clean, Spic and Bridge) or a cleaner made specifically for tile and grout

Nylon or plastic scrubbers

How to Clean Porcelain and Ceramic Tile

Porcelain and ceramic tile surfaces make maintenance easy for you with many piece of cake-care benefits.

You know best how often to make clean, whether that means in one case a week, twice a calendar week, or even every twenty-four hour period — after all, information technology depends on the level of pes traffic in your home, how much you use a space, and if y'all have any mess-making humans or pets in the house. Where and how your surface is used — such as flooring, countertop, or shower tile — also determines when you need to clean.

For regular light cleaning of porcelain and ceramic surfaces, all you need to do is:

Sweep: Your outset step is to sweep away dust, crumbs, and other debris that have accumulated since your last cleaning. Take this time to sweep or clean any throw rugs. If yous're cleaning a porcelain or ceramic tile counter rather than floor, simply wipe off crumbs.
Wipe with h2o: Next, wipe with make clean water. That'southward right: h2o alone is plenty to make clean lightly soiled porcelain and ceramic tile surfaces. No harsh chemicals are necessary! If you cull to apply a mop for your flooring, be sure you have swept upwardly droppings beforehand and utilise a flat mop rather than a sponge mop to keep from pushing dingy h2o into the grout lines.
Dry: Dry out thoroughly after wiping with h2o, either past air-drying or using a microfiber cloth (a dry flat mop is bully too).

[Related: How Dirty Are Your Carpets? A Robot Baby Reveals the Ugly Truth ]

How to Deep Make clean Porcelain and Ceramic Tile

Sweeping and wiping with water may not be enough to make clean upwardly every mess that life throws your style. Besides, periodic deep cleaning is essential to any dwelling house cleaning routine.

Deep cleaning means swapping out water for a cleaning solution. Think you already know how to clean and disinfect? A recent study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found that one-3rd of Americans are cleaning wrong, so mind upward: The best cleaners for porcelain and ceramic tile are those that are formulated particularly for tile and grout. Makes sense, correct?

When you can't find a tile-specific cleaning production, wait for a pH-neutral cleaner or slightly alkaline metal cleaner, such as Spic and Span or Mr. Clean. Don't use oil- or wax-based cleaners because they leave a residue on your surfaces that may concenter dirt more than readily. For more information on different types of cleaners and what'south recommended, whorl downward.

A little elbow grease may besides be all that'southward necessary for tough-to-remove spills and messes. Plastic and nylon scrubbers are nifty for these instances.

Rinse thoroughly with clean, articulate water later on cleaning to remove any residue from the cleaner. Otherwise, residue will concenter dirt and may leave your surface with a wearisome advent. Using clean water to rinse the surface is very of import, then refill your bucket with new h2o rather than reusing dingy rinse water.

Dry thoroughly — just give your surfaces a bit of time to air dry or wipe with a clean, dry mop or cloth.

How to Disinfect Porcelain and Ceramic Tile

We may now be more concerned with disinfecting our surfaces than ever before. Porcelain and ceramic tile surfaces don't require the use of harsh cleaning chemicals, which is an advantage for those of us wanting to keep these substances out of our kitchens. Yet, annotation that the occasional utilize of harsher disinfectants will not irksome or damage porcelain or ceramic tile, such as may be the example with many other nonceramic surface materials.

Consult the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA'due south) list of registered disinfectants when deciding on which to use, and continue in mind that different disinfectants may be more appropriate for fighting specific leaner or viruses. Exist sure to thoroughly rinse away the suds after cleaning to preclude residual from drying on your surfaces.

Annotation: Ever follow the characterization's instructions for prophylactic utilise when cleaning with disinfectants and chemicals, such equally ensuring proper ventilation and wearing gloves.

[Related: Mail service-Pandemic Dream Kitchen Guide ]

How to Clean Textured Porcelain and Ceramic Tile

Practice you have textured tile? If you're not certain if your tile is textured or not, but reach out and touch it! Textured tile may take a three-dimensional surface, then you may feel rising and falling slopes, angles, ridges, or other convex and concave spaces.

You tin make clean textured tile the same way you would make clean regular porcelain and ceramic surfaces, with only a couple extra steps:

When sweeping, sweep in ii directions: first in the direction of the tile and then diagonally.
When mopping, wiping, or scrubbing, follow the same two-direction process. For highly textured or rough tile, scrubbing with a brush volition be more than effective than wiping with a cloth.

[Related: Tile Trend Ideas: Gauged Porcelain Tile ]

How to Clean Grout

It'southward logical that you will make clean your grout at the same time that you lot make clean your tile, without whatever actress steps. However, grout may develop stains or other issues over time that require a little extra care:

How to deep clean grout: Scrub the grout using a grout castor (or an old toothbrush) and a cleaner specifically formulated for tile and grout. If possible, vacuum up the dirty water with a moisture-dry vacuum to lift the dirt off the joint. And then rinse with clean water and vacuum that upwards as well to remove any residue soap. (If y'all don't take admission to a wet-dry vacuum, thoroughly rinse with make clean water and dry out the grout with a towel.)
How to remove stains from grout: Tough stains may be unproblematic to remove with a steam cleaner. The pressurized steam brings the stains to the grout'due south surface, where you can more easily scrub them away.
How to forestall grout from staining: Many grouts are now self-sealing to protect confronting staining. If y'all are using a cementitious grout that isn't a cocky-sealing grout, seal it after installation and and so regularly reseal to maintain the stain and moisture resistance, decrease maintenance, and help the grout retain its original color. Run into the sealer's product data for instructions. Notation: Epoxy grout does not require sealing.
How to remove mold or mildew from grout: Porcelain and ceramic tile'southward hard-fired surface makes it inert and inhospitable to bacteria, mold, and mildew. Nevertheless, a breakup in your grout's sealant could allow water, soap, and oily clay into the subsurface and lead to bacteria growth. If you use an alkaline cleaner such equally bleach for a rare deep cleaning, yous should thoroughly rinse the area, dry the grout thoroughly, and utilize a sealer within 24 hours to prevent future mold and mildew growth. Notation: Porcelain and ceramic surfaces are bleach-safe and volition not be harmed or fade from bleach as with some other nonceramic surface materials.

Pro tip: If you are not able to remove a stain or you want to replace your grout with self-sealing grout, y'all tin can remove the existing grout and regrout. Consult with an expert before taking any activeness. Never grout straight over sometime grout without removing it first.

Types of Tile and Grout Cleaners

Cleaners fall into 3 categories: alkaline (cleaners with a pH above seven), acidic (cleaners with a pH below vii), and neutral (cleaners with a pH of 7). Prolonged use of cleaners that are highly alkaline (products with a high pH similar un-diluted household bleach) or highly acidic (products with a low pH similar vinegar) may interruption down some sealers which are there to assist preclude soap scum, oils, and dirt from penetrating into the grout. If employ of highly acidic or alkali metal cleaners is needed, consult with the grout manufacturer for their recommendations.

Element of group i cleaners: Utilize this type of cleaner when you lot demand to remove stubborn grease or other substances that volition not come off with water solitary. While highly alkali metal cleaners may non harm tile or grout when used occasionally, they tin strip away sealant from the grout over time and you may demand to somewhen rejuvenate your sealant. Highly alkali metal cleaners may likewise chemically burn your peel so wear gloves and avert splashing. With a pH of 12, united nations-diluted household bleach is an instance of an element of group i cleaner and should non be used on tile and grout on a regular ground. For cleaning and sanitizing, the CDC recommends a dilution of one cup of bleach to five gallons of h2o. Diluting bleach decreases the alkalinity and is safe for regular use on all types of porcelain and ceramic tile surfaces. Thoroughly rinse any cleaner from the surface and do not permit residue to dry on the tile and grout.
Acidic cleaners: Highly acidic cleaners are corrosive but in a different way than highly alkali metal cleaners. Since cement grout is alkaline, the acid reacts with it and dissolves a thin layer on pinnacle, exposing clean grout below. While these cleaners may appear to "clean," almost manufacturers do not recommend them because of their eroding effect on grout. Acidic tile and grout cleaners should only be used past professionals when removing and replacing grout.
Neutral cleaners: Neutral solutions with a pH of 7 (merely like water) are preferred for tile and grout. Consider cleaners made specifically for tile and grout kickoff or turn to a mildly element of group i detergent (i.eastward. Mr. Clean, Spic and Span). Annotation, neutral cleaners are the just cleaners recommended for colored grout.

Takeaways: Neutral cleaners fabricated specifically for tile and grout are the all-time option for cleaning when water lonely won't piece of work. If neutral cleaners aren't strong plenty, attempt a mildly alkaline detergent — merely never an acidic cleaner.

For a list of companies that manufacture cleaners designed specifically for tile and grout, visit the Tile Council of North America (TCNA).

A Clean Home Is a Happy Home

Not many of us dearest to clean, but the former refrain is true: A make clean abode is a happy dwelling house — and a healthy habitation. Keep your house clean and your porcelain and ceramic tile looking brand-new by cleaning regularly, following these easy steps, and sticking with recommended cleaners.

Not sure if y'all'll remember everything? Print out our downloadable cleaning tips and tuck them near your cleaning supplies — a good reminder to clean regularly and make clean well!